(Adds details, analyst)
STOCKHOLM, Dec 7 (Reuters) - Prices for Swedish one- and
two-family homes have risen in the past three months, the
statistics office said on Thursday, with the indicator showing
little sign of the slowdown picked up by other price gauges for
the housing market.
Still, analysts said that outcome did not necessarily
contradict other figures pointing to slumping market due to the
lag inherent in the statistics office (SCB) figures.
The average price of Swedish houses rose 1 percent in the
three months to the end of November from the previous
three-month period, the statistics office (SCB) said on
Thursday.
On an annual basis, prices were up 9 percent.
"It was very strong, but there is a lag here. It has tended
to be a three, and sometimes four, month delay so it is too
early to draw any conclusions," said Olle Holmgren, analyst at
SEB.
The SCB data measure prices the day when the deed is
transferred, whereas other housing statistics often use the day
when the contract is signed. There is often a gap of several
months between the two dates.
Last month, statistics from Valueguard showed home prices
fell for the second straight month in October.
Property prices in the Nordic country have boomed over the
past two decades, leaving Swedish households among the most
indebted in Europe.
The surging debts, which have easily outpaced household wage
growth, have prompted warnings from Swedish watchdogs, the
International Monetary Fund and the European Commission.
Last week, the government gave the green light for the
financial regulator to impose tougher mortgage-repayment rules
on borrowers, despite warnings from analysts that the tightening
could accelerate the recent fall in house prices.
(Reporting by Johan Ahlander; editing by Niklas Pollard;
editing by Niklas Pollard)